Over 93m to get view of Galway

Date Published: 01-Jun-2010

THE many touristic sights and sounds of Galway will be brought to an audience of over 93 million American viewers in a special one hour feature which will be broadcast on the Travel Channel in September.

Presenter Samantha Brown and her crew visited Galway last week and spent various days scouting, filming and shooting in some of the city and county’s most famous tourist attractions.

Adrian Devane, a location manager from Screen West accompanied Samantha and her crew and introduced her to some of Galway’s most memorable characters.

“She had been to Ireland before but had never met the characters that she met in Galway. She met the King of the Claddagh Mike Lynskey who explained how he got his title.

“This broadcast is a huge coup for us and a fantastic opportunity to convey our message about the wonderful tourism product in Galway around the island of Ireland to a huge audience across the US,” said Niall Gibbons, Chief Executive of Tourism Ireland.

The one-hour feature will highlight the culture and heritage of Galway city and county and it is hoped that the exposure will draw American tourists to Galway giving a welcome boost to tourism, one of Ireland’s largest indigenous industries.

The Travel Channel is a satellite and cable TV channel featuring documentaries, travel and leisure features filmed around the world.

Galway joins a host of other popular tourist destinations visited by the presenter such as Santa Barbara, Atlanta, Monaco, Cannes and Nice.

“This really is massive for Galway. It may take a while for the county to reap the rewards after the show is aired but it should certainly attract more tourists. She found everyone so welcoming and friendly. She’ll have to come back,” said Mr Devane